Category: Missions

Missions start strong behind Efrain Contreras’ pitching, Pedro Castellanos’ slam before falling to Naturals

The Missions' Pedro Contreras hits a grand slam in the second inning. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
The Missions’ Pedro Contreras hits a grand slam in the second inning.

The San Antonio Missions’ Luis Aviles Jr. came through with a two-run double in the second inning.

And then, Pedro Castellanos hit his fourth home run of the season, a grand slam later in the same inning.

And then, Missions starter Efrain Contreras pitched five no-hit innings.

And then, the Missions were on their way to a 7-0 lead after seven innings on Saturday night at Wolff Stadium.

And then, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals rallied… and rallied… and rallied.

The Naturals scored three runs in the eighth, four in the ninth, and outscored the Missions 4-3 in three extra innings for an 11-10 victory. Northwest Arkansas scored the go-ahead run on an RBI double by Jose Briceno in the top of the 12th inning.

Contreras, who is rebuilding his career after an injury wiped out his 2021 season, had his best outing of the season in his fifth start and was in line for a win when he left the game. The 23-year-old right-hander pitched five full innings and struck out six batters and had three walks.

Castellanos finished the game with two hits and five RBIs.

Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz had two hits and scored twice.

Juan Fernandez had only one plate appearance but extended his hitting streak to seven games. He entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the 11th inning and produced an RBI single.

Missions starter Efrain Contreras left the game with a 7-0 lead after pitching five no-hit innings. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions starter Efrain Contreras left the game with a 7-0 lead after pitching five no-hit innings.
Luis Aviles Jr. hit a two-run double to help the Missions score seven runs in the second inning. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Luis Aviles Jr. hit a two-run double to help the Missions score seven runs in the second inning.
Ray-Patrick Didder made his San Antonio Missions debut and played center field. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 11-10 in 12 innings on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Ray-Patrick Didder made his San Antonio Missions debut and played center field.

Daniel Johnson, Luis Aviles Jr. homer as Missions beat Naturals

Luis Aviles Jr. homered in the second inning. The San Antonio Missions beat the Northwest Arkansas Naturals 5-1 on Thursday, April 27, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Luis Aviles Jr. homered in the second inning.

Daniel Johnson hit a two-run homer in the third inning. The San Antonio Missions beat the Northwest Arkansas Naturals 5-1 on Thursday, April 27, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Daniel Johnson hit a two-run homer in the third inning.
Luis Aviles Jr. hit his first home run of the season and Daniel Johnson hit his second to give the San Antonio Missions more runs than they needed to beat the Northwest Arkansas Naturals 5-1 on Thursday night at Wolff Stadium.

Aviles hit a solo shot in the second inning. Johnson added a two-run homer in the third inning.

The Missions also got some offense from some of their veteran players. Tirso Ornelas had two hits and an RBI. Juan Fernandez doubled for the third night in a row and scored a run. Fernandez has a five-game hitting streak and is batting .452 in nine games.

Missions starting pitcher Duncan Snider went 4 1/3 innings and allowed one earned run on four hits and five walks with five strikeouts.

CD Pelham, the first receiver out of the Missions’ bullpen, got the last two outs of the fifth inning to earn his first win of the season. He allowed one hit and struck out one.

Missions relievers Nick Hernandez, Jose Espada and Jared Koenig combined to pitch the last four scoreless innings to hold down the win.

Jackson Wolf’s pitching, Michael De La Cruz’s homer power Missions past NW Arkansas

Michael De La Cruz celebrates his fifth-inning home run. The San Antonio Missions beat the Northwest Arkansas Naturals 10-2 on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Michael De La Cruz celebrates his fifth-inning home run.
San Diego Padres prospect Jackson Wolf struck out a season-high 10 batters and switch-hitting catcher Michael De La Cruz hit his second home run as the San Antonio Missions beat up Northwest Arkansas 10-2 on Wednesday afternoon at Wolff Stadium.

Wolf, the only Missions starter to earn a win in the first 16 games of the season, ran his record to 2-2. The 6-foot-7 left-hander pitched five complete innings, allowed one run on four hits with one walk and double-digit strikeouts.

De La Cruz hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning. He finished with three hits, four RBIs and two runs scored.

The Missions piled up 11 hits. Ripken Reyes, another switch-hitter, had two hits, two RBIs and scored a run. Pedro Castellanos had two hits and an RBI and was hit by a pitch. Juan Fernandez had two hits, doubled for the second game in a row, had one RBI and scored twice.

Missions reliever Kevin Kopps pitched the final three scoreless innings for his first save of the season. The former University of Arkansas pitcher allowed one hit with no walks and struck out four.

Starting pitcher Jackson Wolff went five innings and got the win. The San Antonio Missions beat the Northwest Arkansas Naturals 10-2 on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Starting pitcher Jackson Wolff went five innings and got the win. The San Antonio Missions beat the Northwest Arkansas Naturals 10-2 on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. – photo by Joe Alexander

Missions’ Nolan Watson has second straight strong start

Missions starter Nolan Watson pitched five strong innings. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the San Antonio Missions 8-3 on Tuesday, April 25, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions starter Nolan Watson pitched five innings.
San Antonio Missions Missions starting pitcher Nolan Watson gave up a run for the first time this season.

And he took the loss Tuesday at Wolff Stadium as the Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the Missions 8-3.

But Watson pitched five full innings for the second straight start and has a stellar 0.64 ERA after pitching in four games this season.

The 6-foot-2 right-hander allowed two runs on Tuesday, only one earned, on five hits and no walks with one strikeout. He threw five scoreless innings in his previous outing.

The Naturals are the Double-A farm club of the Kansas City Royals. The 26-year-old Watson was originally picked by the Royals in the first round of the 2015 draft.

Missions reliever Edwuin Bencomo looks like he is finding his groove. He has appeared in six games this season and has not allowed a run in his last four. He pitched the final 1 1/3 innings on Tuesday and allowed one hit with one strikeout and no walks.

The Missions had 10 hits in the game but didn’t put much together until they scored twice in the bottom of the eighth inning. Tirso Ornelas and Juan Fernandez each put up two hits, including a double, with one run and one RBI. Daniel Johnson had a hit and drove in the Missions’ other run.

The Naturals scored first with two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth. Northwest Arkansas took control with five runs in the top of the eighth.

Texas Rangers prospects Evan Carter, Dustin Harris hit home runs to close out series against Missions

Frisco's Evan Carter had two hits including a home run on Sunday. The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 12-2 on Sunday, April 16, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Frisco’s Evan Carter had two hits including a home run on Sunday.
The Frisco RoughRiders rolled into San Antonio with some of the top young prospects in the Texas Rangers organization.

The RoughRiders wrapped up the six-game series with a 12-2 victory over the San Antonio Missions on Sunday at Wolff Stadium.

Frisco had 12 hits including a leadoff home run by Evan Carter and a grand slam by Dustin Harris. The RoughRiders also drew 10 walks.

Carter is a 20-year-old outfielder and the No. 1 prospect in the Rangers’ minor leagues. He pounded his way through six-game series against the Missions with 10 hits, four runs, 11 RBIs, seven walks, three home runs and a double.

Harris, a 23-year-old first baseman/outfielder, is the No. 7 Rangers prospect, according to MLB.com. He had six hits, five runs, five RBIs and seven walks against the Missions including a home run and double on Sunday.

Frisco's Dustin Harris steals second base. The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 12-2 on Sunday, April 16, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Frisco’s Dustin Harris steals second base.

Texas Rangers’ minor league pitchers showing their stuff against Missions

Frisco starting pitcher Nick Krauth got the win. The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 7-0 on Friday, April 14, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Frisco starting pitcher Nick Krauth got the win.
Frisco pitchers limited the San Antonio Missions to three hits on Friday night and the RoughRiders rolled to a 7-0 victory at Wolff Stadium.

Frisco, which is the Double-A farm club of the Texas Rangers, has held the Missions to two runs over the last 28 innings in the series and outscored San Antonio 22-2 over the last three games.

RoughRiders starting pitcher Nick Krauth went five innings and got the win. He allowed one hit, two walks and one strikeout.

Four Frisco relievers – Ricky DeVito, Grant Wolfram, Nick Starr and Triston Polley – combined to allow two hits and two walks with three strikeouts over the last four innings.

The Missions used a position player to pitch in the ninth inning. Catcher/infielder Juan Fernandez, who played the first eight innings at third base, retired the RoughRiders in order in the ninth. Missions starting pitcher Duncan Snider went 3.1 innings and allowed four runs on eight hits and three walks with three strikeouts.

Frisco got a home run from Scott Kapers. The top three batters in the Rough Riders’ batting order piled up the offense with Evan Carter, Luisangel Acuna and Dustin Harris combining for nine hits, three walks, four RBIs and two runs.

Daniel Johnson was the only batter in the top half of the Missions' order with a hit. The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 7-0 on Friday, April 14, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Daniel Johnson was the only batter in the top half of the Missions’ order with a hit.

Texas Rangers pitching prospect holds Missions in check, again

Frisco starter Owen White held San Antonio scoreless through the first 4 2/3 innings. The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 8-1 on Thursday, April 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Frisco starter Owen White held San Antonio scoreless through the first 4 2/3 innings.
For the second night in a row, the San Antonio Missions faced one of the top young pitchers in the Texas Rangers organization.

And for the second straight night, the Missions had a tough time getting their bats going.

Frisco starter Owen White pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings and the RoughRiders beat the Missions 8-1 Thursday night at Wolff Stadium. White held the Missions to one hit, walked two and struck out four.

MLB Pipeline lists White as the No. 60 prospect in all of minor league baseball. The 23-year-old right-hander is the No. 2 prospect in the Texas Rangers minor league system, behind only Frisco outfielder Evan Carter.

The Missions managed just four hits on the night. Their only run came on a Tirso Ornelas home run in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Frisco reliever John Matthews pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings to get the win, allowing one hit and one walk with two strikeouts.

Missions starting pitcher Jackson Wolf lasted only 1 2/3 innings, allowed four earned runs and took the loss.

Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz had two hits. Juan Fernandez and Ornelas accounted for the other two San Antonio hits.

Missions middle relievers Jose Espada and Seth Mayberry combined to hold the RoughRiders hitless for five straight innings. Espada took over in the fourth inning and threw four shutout innings, allowing only one walk with three strikeouts. Mayberry held Frisco scoreless in the eighth despite allowing two walks along with two strikeouts.

On Wednesday night, Frisco starter Jack Leiter held the Missions to one run over 4 1/3 innings in a 7-1 RoughRiders victory. Leiter is the No. 4 prospect in the Rangers’ organization.

Michael De La Cruz. The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 8-1 on Thursday, April 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Missions catcher Michael De La Cruz tags out the RoughRiders’ Evan Carter in a rundown between first and second.
Tirso Ornelas. The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 8-1 on Thursday, April 13, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
The Missions’ Tirso Ornelas celebrates after hitting a ninth-inning home run.
San Antonio reliever Jose Espada pitched four innings and held Frisco hitless and scoreless over that stretch in the RockHounds' 8-1 victory over the Missions on Thursday at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
San Antonio reliever Jose Espada pitched four innings and held Frisco hitless and scoreless over that stretch.

Missions’ bats struggle against Frisco

Evan Mendoza drove in the Missions' only run in the fourth inning. The San Antonio Missions lost to the Frisco RoughRiders 7-1 on Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Evan Mendoza drove in the Missions’ only run in the fourth inning.
The Frisco RoughRiders beat the San Antonio Missions 7-1 on Wednesday at Wolff Stadium.

Daniel Johnson scored the Missions’ only run in the fourth inning. He led off with a walk, advanced when Tirso Ornelas followed with a walk and came home on a line-drive single by Evan Mendoza.

Korry Howell, a top San Diego Padres prospect, had two hits. Howell is 4-of-8 in the first two games of the Missions’ six-game homestand.

San Antonio starting pitcher Efrain Contreras left the game with two outs in the second inning after giving up five walks to the eight batters he faced. He allowed two runs on two hits with no strikeouts.

The Missions used four relievers. The last two, Nick Hernandez and Jose Quezada, pitched two scoreless innings each. Hernandez struck out six batters and Quezada struck out three.

Korry Howell had two hits Wednesday. The San Antonio Missions lost to the Frisco RoughRiders 7-1 on Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Korry Howell had two hits Wednesday.

More photos from Missions’ 2023 home opener

San Antonio Missions third baseman Connor Hollis in Missions' 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
San Antonio Missions third baseman Connor Hollis in Missions’ 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. – photo by Joe Alexander
The San Antonio Missions gave local fans plenty to cheer about in their first home game of the 2023 Texas League season, a 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday at Wolff Stadium.

Henry the Puffy Taco in Missions' 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
It wouldn’t be Missions baseball without Henry the Puffy Taco.

Mendoza, Ornelas homer as Missions celebrate win in home opener against Frisco

Evan Mendoza, Tirso Ornelas hit first two homers of San Antonio’s season

Evan Mendoza hits a second-inning home run in the San Antonio Missions' 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Evan Mendoza hits a second-inning home run in the Missions’ victory over Frisco.
Tirso Ornelas hits a third-inning home run in the San Antonio Missions' 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Tirso Ornelas hits a third-inning home run that gave the Missions a 2-0 lead.

Tuesday night at Wolff Stadium began with celebrations and lots of VIPs.

In the end it came down to the time honored baseball skills of hitting, fielding and pitching.

The San Antonio Missions blasted their first two home runs of the season and six pitchers combined on a three-hit shutout in a 4-0 victory over the Frisco Rough Riders in the Missions’ home opener.

Evan Mendoza homered in the second inning, the Missions’ first jack of the season, for a 1-0 lead that San Antonio never gave up. Tirso Ornelas added another solo homer in the third inning.

Daniel Johnson and Korry Howell drove in the other two runs for the Missions, who had seven hits on the night.

Nolan Watson started on the mound, going three full scoreless innings and allowing one hit and two walks with two strikeouts.

Seth Mayberry followed Watson and went one inning with no hits or walks and one strikeout. Mayberry was credited with his first win of the season.

Justin Lopez and Henry Henry both pitched one inning in relief, Lake Bachar went 1 2/3 and Jared Koenig pitched the final 1 1/3 innings.

The six-game series between the Missions and RoughRiders continues Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. at Wolff Stadium.

Nolan Watson was the starting pitcher in the San Antonio Missions' 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Nolan Watson was the starting pitcher in the Missions’ victory.
Seth Mayberry got the win in relief in the San Antonio Missions' 4-0 victory over the Frisco RoughRiders on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Wolff Stadium. - photo by Joe Alexander
Seth Mayberry got the win in relief.